The Yellow Fountain

Sey-hak is 3 months old, and he can already smile and say, "Mama."  He gets excited when Kim comes home because that means it's time to drink real milk, not formula. 

Like many people, they can't afford diapers.  Unless he's resting in the hammock with a cloth wrapped around him, someone is holding him - facing away in case a yellow fountain erupts.  The first time I watched Sey-hak let loose while in his grandma's lap, Kim looked kind of embarrassed and said, "Is it o.k.?"  I assured her that I didn't care.  But inside, I was laughing while they wiped his urine off the wood floor (the same wood floor where we ate about a half hour later).

Kim told me that her mother took Sey-hak to the hospital because he kept vomiting after he drank milk.  I told her this is normal; all babies spit up.  I explained that when he drinks, he also sucks in air which fills his belly, and he needs to burp to get it out.  Then, I showed her how to burp him. 

This is just one example of the enormous lack of common knowledge I come across every day.  The people are not to blame for this.  Pol Pot's regime killed teachers, doctors, nurses, scientists, artists, and every other intellectual in the country.  The only people left were poor country folk who didn't know how to revolt.  These people can grow rice in a swamp or a desert, but they couldn't point out England on a map.